FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Roger Freet (415) 477-4414
Roger.Freet@harpercollins.com

KEPLER’S WITCH
An Astronomer’s Discovery of Cosmic Order Amid Religious War,
Political Intrigue, and the Heresy Trial of His Mother

"His biographer depicts him brilliantly . . . 'Kepler did not wish to separate his science from his metaphysics or his metaphysics from his mysticism,' writes Connor, who gives us a healthy, purposeful, and illuminating does of each." —Kirkus

". . . Kepler has received less than his due from rationally-minded scholars. This luminous biography will help remedy that injustice." —Booklist (starred review)

With news from Mars making headlines daily—and the latest announcement from NASA that the twin rover mission could stretch into late summer—release of a major biography about one of the true giants in the history of science and astronomy that helped make all of this possible couldn't be better timed. Enter the early 17th century astronomer Johannes Kepler who

KEPLER’S WITCH by James A. Connor (HarperSanFrancisco; Hardcover; April 2004) is a fascinating and largely untold biography of an icon of the modern age—Johannes Kepler, the “Protestant Galileo.” Set against the backdrop of the witchcraft trial of his mother, KEPLER’S WITCH vividly brings to life the tidal forces of Reformation, Counter-Reformation, and submerges us into these turbulent times, revealing not only the surprisingly spiritual nature of early modern science, but also Kepler’s role as a neglected hero of conscience.

The NASA Kepler Mission is a testimony to Kepler’s enduring significance.
David Koch, who penned the Foreword, is the deputy principal investigator for the NASA Kepler Mission. The Kepler Mission is a special space mission for detecting terrestrial planets—that is rocky, earth-sized planets—around other stars.

This is a major biography of Kepler. Connor has translated witchcraft trial records, testimonies, Kepler’s diary entries and correspondence into English for the first time.

JAMES A. CONNOR is a former Jesuit priest who is now professor of English at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. He has also held teaching posts at St. Louis University and Gonzaga University. The author of God’s Breath and Other Stories and Silent Fire, a spiritual memoir,Connor holds degrees in geoscience, philosophy of science, theology, creative writing, and a doctorate in literature and science. He has studied with writers such as Frank Conroy and is a prize-winning essayist published widely in such places as American Book Review, Traditional Home Magazine, Willow Springs, The Critic, The Iowa Review, and The Iowa Journal of Literary Studies. The Kepler Society in Germany (Kepler Gesellschaft) has invited Connor to found the American Kepler Society concurrent with the publication of KEPLER’S WITCH.

DAVID KOCH, who penned the Foreword, is the deputy principal investigator for the NASA Kepler Mission. The Kepler Mission is a special NASA space mission for detecting terrestrial planets—that is rocky, earth-sized planets—around other stars. This satellite mission is scheduled for launch in 2006. He will be a founding member of the American Kepler Society.

KEPLER’S WITCH

An Astronomer’s Discovery of Cosmic Order Amid Religious War,
Political Intrigue, and the Heresy Trial of His Mother
by James A. Connor
HarperSanFrancisco; A Division of HarperCollins Publishers
Hardcover; 416 Pages; $24.95; April 2004
ISBN: 0-06-052255-0



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Roger Freet (415) 477-4414 Roger.Freet@harpercollins.com KEPLER’S WITCH *An Astronomer’s Discovery of Cosmic Order Amid Religious War,* *Political Intrigue, and the Heresy Trial of His Mother* "His biographer depicts him brilliantly . . . 'Kepler did not wish to separate his science from his metaphysics or his metaphysics from his mysticism,' writes Connor, who gives us a healthy, purposeful, and illuminating does of each." —Kirkus ". . . Kepler has received less than his due from rationally-minded scholars. This luminous biography will help remedy that injustice." —Booklist (starred review) With news from Mars making headlines daily—and the latest announcement from NASA that the twin rover mission could stretch into late summer—release of a major biography about one of the true giants in the history of science and astronomy that helped make all of this possible couldn't be better timed. Enter the early 17th century astronomer Johannes Kepler who First calculated the true shape of the solar system Discovered the three laws of planetary motion Confirmed the Copernican universe Laid the foundation for Newton’s physics KEPLER’S WITCH by James A. Connor (HarperSanFrancisco; Hardcover; April 2004) is a fascinating and largely untold biography of an icon of the modern age—Johannes Kepler, the “Protestant Galileo.” Set against the backdrop of the witchcraft trial of his mother, KEPLER’S WITCH vividly brings to life the tidal forces of Reformation, Counter-Reformation, and submerges us into these turbulent times, revealing not only the surprisingly spiritual nature of early modern science, but also Kepler’s role as a neglected hero of conscience. The NASA Kepler Mission is a testimony to Kepler’s enduring significance. David Koch, who penned the Foreword, is the deputy principal investigator for the NASA Kepler Mission. The Kepler Mission is a special space mission for detecting terrestrial planets—that is rocky, earth-sized planets—around other stars. The doorway into Kepler’s life and times is the witchcraft trial of his elderly mother Katharina, a strange little woman who, like Kepler himself, was too smart for the world she lived in. The story is filled with crooked judges, bigoted tribunals, sadistic bailiffs, and a jumble of nasty neighbors bent on the destruction of this single, half-mad old woman. These witchcraft trials are nearly impenetrable to us in the twenty-first century, but KEPLER’S WITCH gives them life. According to Connor, witches in the seventeenth century were the terrorists of their day; nearly everyone believed in them, and so the question was never “are there witches?” but “who is a real witch, and who is not?” Thousands of people—mostly women—had gone to the stake by the time of Katharina Kepler’s trial. This is a major biography of Kepler. Connor has translated witchcraft trial records, testimonies, Kepler’s diary entries and correspondence into English for the first time. Johannes Kepler’s life became a pilgrimage, a spiritual journey into the modern world through war, disease and terrible injustice on the eve of Europe’s terrible and bloody Thirty Years’ War. Kepler was concerned with more than scientific discoveries and achievement—he fought for peace and reconciliation between the Christian churches, even when it nearly cost him his life. Exiled twice by Catholic princes and excommunicated by his fellow Lutherans, he was unbowed in his scientific and moral vision. With a great respect for the history of these times and the life of this man, Connor’s unforgettable story illuminates Kepler, the man of science, but also Kepler, a man of uncommon faith and courage. # # # JAMES A. CONNOR is a former Jesuit priest who is now professor of English at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. He has also held teaching posts at St. Louis University and Gonzaga University. The author of God’s Breath and Other Stories and Silent Fire, a spiritual memoir,Connor holds degrees in geoscience, philosophy of science, theology, creative writing, and a doctorate in literature and science. He has studied with writers such as Frank Conroy and is a prize-winning essayist published widely in such places as American Book Review, Traditional Home Magazine, Willow Springs, The Critic, The Iowa Review, and The Iowa Journal of Literary Studies. The Kepler Society in Germany (Kepler Gesellschaft) has invited Connor to found the American Kepler Society concurrent with the publication of KEPLER’S WITCH. DAVID KOCH, who penned the Foreword, is the deputy principal investigator for the NASA Kepler Mission. The Kepler Mission is a special NASA space mission for detecting terrestrial planets—that is rocky, earth-sized planets—around other stars. This satellite mission is scheduled for launch in 2006. He will be a founding member of the American Kepler Society. KEPLER’S WITCH An Astronomer’s Discovery of Cosmic Order Amid Religious War, Political Intrigue, and the Heresy Trial of His Mother by James A. Connor HarperSanFrancisco; A Division of HarperCollins Publishers Hardcover; 416 Pages; $24.95; April 2004 ISBN: 0-06-052255-0

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